There's more to touring Australia than watching cricket. Hamish Anderson picks
his favourite regional wines from the locations of this winter's Ashes Tests

The slaughter in Brisbane, complete with sledging, high-speed Australian bowlers and English batting implosion, had a worrying ring of the good old days, at least from an Aussie point of view. Their approach to cricket may not have changed much, but the Australian wine scene has transformed in the last decade. Big, bold and in your face has given way to subtlety, poise and diversity. Think David Gower, not David Boon.

1st Test, Brisbane

We can gloss over the disaster of the first Test safe in the knowledge that, bar a few notable exceptions, Queensland is a vinous backwater. From a wine perspective, things can only get better as England move around Australia. But there have been high points on the tour already. Think back to Hobart (against Australia A) and the Cook/Carberry opening partnership of 318 and sip a glass of Tasmanian fizz (here they make some of the world’s finest bubbles outside of Champagne) – Jansz’s white or rosé (£15.25, from Oddbins or Ocado) will do the trick.

2nd Test, Adelaide

South Australia is the engine room of the country’s wine production. It is from here the ubiquitous but dull bottles emanate, yet it is also home to some of the planet’s finest bottles, from Clare Valley, Barossa Valley, Coonawarra and many more. If you are planning to stay up late to watch England redeem themselves, refresh with a glass of icy cool Mount Horrocks Riesling (Tesco have some '09 at the moment, £14). Or get some red meat in for Lake Breeze’s Bernoota, a compelling take on the country’s unique blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz (the '09 is available from Swig; £282 for a case).

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The vinous action lies to the south of Perth, most famously in Margaret River but equally impressively in the likes of Great Southern. What to drink? If your notion of Australian Chardonnay is a wine of a suspect yellow colour and smelling of sickly vanilla this is the place to have your mind changed. Stella Bella’s is a fine start (Corking Wines, £116.70 per case) or if you really want to go for it and celebration is in order, Vanya Cullen’s Chardonnay is not cheap (£50 from Drinkshop), but worth every penny.

4th Test, Melbourne

All being well, there'll still be something to play for by the time the Barmy Army descend on Melbourne. Fortunately there are rich pickings amongst Victoria’s cool climate (lower temperatures tend to produce a lighter, restrained style), and regions such as the Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula and Beechworth will help see you through a tense match. Luke Lambert’s Syrah (£36, winebear.com) is as good an example of new-wave Aussie Shiraz (Shiraz/Syrah are the same grape) as I have tried. Or have a go at the hauntingly perfumed Circe Pinot Noir (£31, Harvey Nichols). It all this modern restraint is getting too much, find a half of Australian vinous history in the form of a Rutherglen sticky – fortified sweet wine of mind-bending intensity.

5th Test, Sydney

Hopefully, won't just fighting for some semblance of pride by the time the tour reaches Sydney, because there's plenty of pleasure to be had in the Hunter Valley, a few hours to the north of the city. This was one of the first areas to be planted with vines in the 1830s, and it would be remiss to not try the area’s USP aged Semillon – you’ll either love it or loathe it, there is rarely middle ground. The Mount Pleasant 'Elizabeth' (£12.49, Majestic Wine) is an inexpensive way to find out. South-west lies Clonakilla who make a Shiraz/Viognier blend (£52.99, AG Wines) fit for kings, queens and Ashes victors.